Rob's New Toy

I call it Rob's new toy, but I am just as happy with it as he is. Well, he is still more excited than me on his new purchase but I am close behind. I have no idea why we waited so long to purchase it, but I have to say it is much easier to push and pull! It turns into a stroller so easily and it is side by side. Now Ellery won't have to peek out the sides or look straight into Mason's back. We have had it out on multiple walks and I am really enjoying it. We got the bikes out and took everyone for a bike ride as well. I am a bit sore from the ride, but all in all everyone had a good time. Ellery did cry every once in a while, she isn't quite used to her helmet. Rob informed me he found a place where you bike on a trail for 10 miles then stop and eat and then bike back another 10 miles. He didn't understand why I wasn't jumping up and down asking when the next trip was. I think this might be something I let him do with the kids. It'll be good bonding for them.

When I Grow Up

When I grow up I want to be just like my daddy. Ellery loves to play with the Dr. kit that we got Mason. She surprises me and puts the stethoscope around her neck all by herself and continues to play and crawl around. It is cute as can be. Mason does the same but then puts it in his ears and tries to listen to your heartbeat. Ellery isn't fond of her brother's assessment skills.

Won't be too much longer

This is an extremely short video, but it was all we captured. Once the camera isn't rolling she then takes 16 steps at once. It just gives you a good visual of her upright. She also does better with something in her hands to hold onto and play with. It makes me look at her in a whole new light, she is becoming such a big girl. It still amazes me how fast time passes us by.

Sucker Mom

We went to the mall with a friend to today to play in the play area along with riding escalators for fun. Mason gets a thrill out of riding up and down the escalators. We ended up passing the Build A Bear shop and I was suckered inside with my little Mason leading the way. He couldn't resist looking and touching the stuffed animals. I had a weak moment and let him pick out a dog and began the process. I was very weak and even bought the dog sound that was stuffed in his paw, it barks and pants. For anyone not familiar with the Build A Bear store it is quite the set up. First you pick out an animal, then you go to the large stuffing machine and stuff your animal. It is a huge machine and you can see the stuffing rolling around inside as they push the pedal and stuff the animal. Ellery was in awe while watching it move. You also get to pick out a stuffed heart about the size of a quarter, do a dance, kiss it and then stuff it inside the animal before they sew it up. Next you move onto the grooming station. It has a pedal the kids get to push for fun while they have their pets under shower heads and brush them. The next step is to pick out clothes for the newest member of the family, we skipped this part, but I have to say some of the clothes were as cute as little girl clothes. You then proceed to filling out the birth certificate. I asked Mason what we should name our dog and with no pause he stated "Hudson". This ought to make Rob proud. We then left the store with a beaming Mason carrying the rather large cardboard box filled with his new furry friend.
While doing this whole process I asked the associate how Build A Bear was doing in this economy. She informed me they were doing great and stated "parents are always willing to spend money on their kids". I told her she was onto something and to look at this sucker referring to myself. She then told me the store was a crazy house on the weekends filled with all sorts of suckers. I guess it gives me some comfort knowing I am not alone on the sucker train.

Ellery 13 Months

Time just flies by us. Ellery is doing great. She talks and babbles a lot more than Mason ever thought about doing. She points to thing and asks 'whats dis" along with "I did it" when she gets something done. She can roar and baa. She points to her nose, ears, and eyes on command. If we try to teach her a new body part and she can't remember which body part she always resorts back to the nose. She loves playing peek a boo and doing motions to songs. Itsy Bitsy Spider, If You're Happy and You Know It, and Where is Thumbkin are her current favorites. She loves feeding herself but is still a bit finicky. She won't eat the peach cut up but woofs it down if I puree it up for her. She is walking but only when we place her on her feet and she does better with no shoes or socks. Only doing 3-4 steps before dropping to her knees and taking off crawling. It is only a matter of days before I start asking myself why I wanted her to walk so badly as I am chasing after her. She has an obsession with playing with shoes and we now find her with her feet slid into my shoes attempting to walk. She will play by herself and her playing by herself usually ends with her in the books if Mason hasn't diverted her attention to something else. She is my independent little girl. She already knows when she wants something and isn't afraid to let you know it.

Night Crawlers

Rob woke up at 1:30 in the morning and saw the lights were on downstairs. When he went to investigate he found Mason sitting at the table eating toast and drinking his milk. He informed Rob he was hungry.

Barney Disappears

One might be joyous if Barney disappeared. My mom was here this past weekend and would tell Mason she doesn't like the purple dinosaur, he then would follow her around repeating it. We could have blamed her for our missing Barney DVD we rented from the library, but we watched it this morning and she had already left. Mason is still an early riser, the time change maybe gave us an extra 30 minutes for a few days, but it went right back to rising between 5:00 and 6:00 am. Today was an early day and he was up at 5am. I was so tired I put Barney on the portable DVD player and let him sit downstairs and watch it. When I got up at 6am I found Mason standing in front of the real DVD player requesting to watch Barney on the "big TV". One big problem, I couldn't find the DVD. I asked Mason where it went and he would tell me he didn't know where it went. We looked all over for it and were unsuccessful. We kept asking Mason where it was and he would say he didn't know, but would end up standing close to the tv and we thought we heard him say in the box\. Rob and I sat down to watch the DVD Twilight and the DVD player wouldn't work. Rob went to investigate and informed me that he found Barney. He then had to take the player apart to retrieve Barney. I would be too lucky to get rid of the purple dinosaur that easily. In the purple dinosaur's defense, he does teach things rather than watching a mindless Disney movie.

Sibling Love

I was capturing pictures of Ellery in her bows when Mason snuggled up into her and requested I take a picture. What an adorable fun loving brother. For the most part they get along great. Ellery looks up to Mason and loves to follow him where ever he goes. She is starting to show some independence from him, she will put her arm up to claim personal space along with toys if Mason approaches to quickly.

Peek-A-Boo

Ellery loves playing peek a boo. I finally captured it on video. She continues to grow and amaze us with her personality. She also took 3-4 steps on her own the other day. She just needs to gain the confidence and take off.

Bows Bows and More Bows

Nana came up for a quick visit and brought a few bows with her this weekend. I prepared myself for total cuteness, but they are darn right adorable in person. I am excited for the next shipment. I should have known she was out of control by the emails she sent me with the subject "out of control". She bought Ellery a few outfits and then made matching hair bows for each outfit. I might have to play dress up and get her picture with them since a lot of them are spring and summer outfits. For now you get bows I have matched to outfits and snapped her picture in.

Rock Climbing

While my friend Nancy and her girls were here for a visit we attended family swim time at LifeTime Fitness and learned Thursday night also offered rock climbing from 5-9pm. We all swam well Rob played with Mason and the girls in the pool while Nancy and I acted like lizards laying on rocks in the hot tub. Fun was had by all. We came home had dinner and then Avery looked at us with wide eyes and asked if we were going to go back for rock climbing. How can one turn that opportunity down so all the girls minus Ellery loaded up and took on the adventure of climbing rocks. I think I am going to take Rob next week for date night and not tell him where we are going.

Zoo with Friends

I think we are going to have to up grade our membership at the zoo. If we keep getting visitors it will be worth our while to do so. We love the company and wonder if we will ever get tired of the zoo. It has so much to offer and we discover something new every time we go. It was fun taking Nancy and girls around the zoo. I forgot that they are terrified of bugs and sent them through the butterfly exhibit. After you walk through all the butterflies you then have to walk through an area with all sorts of bugs and spiders. Nancy said they zipped through it so fast I would have found it funny.
The gorillas were in full swing and active as can be. They would come up to the glass, look at everyone through it, turn their back towards us, look at us again, put his arm up on the glass, look back at us, and then hit the glass and take off running. It did it a few times in a row and Mason kept saying "uh oh, what happened". Also, the polar bear was doing a funky dance. It might become a household dance move now. He was walking forward and then backwards but before he started to walk backwards he would swing his head to one side hold it for a split second and do it again. It was very rhythmic and interesting to watch.

Mall vs Mole

My friend Nancy and her girls came up to visit and brought gifts, we didn't get them gifts, but I wanted to tell them a departing gift might show up a few days after their visit like it did for my friend Kristin.
Anyways, we went to the mall one afternoon and took Ellery and Mason along for the ride. They did surprisingly well. Mason had to carry around a blue pair of shoes in one store and listened very well. He was excited to play and look at books in the bookstore and he was delighted when Nancy's girls requested to stop at the cookie factory. I think Mason might associate the mall with getting a cookie. He had to pick between a basketball, baseball, and butterfly cookie. I was proud when he picked the basketball. I LOVE March Madness Basketball!
Another funny story about the mall. Everytime I would tell Mason we were going to the mall he would inform me that daddy has a mole. I would correct him with the word mall and he would still say something about Rob's mole. I finally figured out he thought I was saying mole and he associated the mall as a mole. Poor kid must have been really confused about the excursion.

Park Fun

We had a gorgeous St. Patrick's Day and celebrated in the park. Ellery was thrilled to swing and go down the slide and Mason was a wonderful big brother and held onto her while they went down the slide.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

We aren't Irish but we feel we have the Luck of the Irish.
I got this quote from my dad in an email and it made me smile so I hope it makes everyone else smile as well!
YOU ARE LIKE A FOUR LEAF CLOVER....HARD TO FIND AND LUCKY TO HAVE.
I couldn't have said anything better so right back at you dad!

Strategic Air and Space Museum

Look closely you will see three pairs of eyes lit up like they are in a candy store rather than at an air and space museum. It was nice, but I was not as thrilled as these three were!

Mason enjoyed pretending he was a pilot. I should have been a pilot, I am a button pusher and look at all the buttons and gauges you get to tinker with. What a button pushers dream.

Rob and Ellery casually posing for a photo opp on a bomb.

It was really neat to look at all the planes. It is fun seeing how big they are and really puts it in prospective when you get to stand right next to it or under it. Rob went through his dad's flight logs and made a list of a few planes his dad had flown. It was a lot of fun going around and looking at them and we were able to find a lot of the planes his dad flew and spent time flying when he was in the air force as a test pilot. I think I would have enjoyed the museum a bit more if Rob's dad would have been able to share his stories and insights.

On a funny note.....Ellery's hair attracts a lot of attention on how it sticks up. In her defense it is starting to lay down a bit more but some days it is wild and crazy. It also amazes me how people will approach her and touch her hair and say things like "wow static sure does a trick on her" and I respond with "that's not static". Anyways, at the Strategic Air and Space Museum they have a place you can pretend to fly a model airplane and keep it straight with all the gadgets. We let Mason try and put Ellery down to watch and got a kick out watching her hair blow around. It of course drew a crowd and she loved every minute of it. Mason like it as well but we are wondering when he will realize the crowd is for his sister and not him!

Old Friends

A great old friend came up from Kansas City to visit us this weekend. It was wonderful catching up and getting some girl time. I think this might be the last picture I take with Ellery, she takes all the attention from me with those vibrant eyes! We had a great girl weekend that Ellery will be able to join in the future. Great conversation, yummy treats, spectacular pedicures, fun shopping, and adult beverages how could anyone go wrong! A big thanks for Kristin taking the time to come up and see us and braving the kids! I am sure her departing gift of a runny nose will arrive in a few days!

Children's Museum

We hit the Children's Museum after the parade for a quick run through since we were in the area. They have traveling exhibits and currently "Speed" is visiting us. I am a huge fan of the Downhill Ski game they have and have been telling Rob about it and he was finally able to experience it with Mason. It is a hot attraction and they have two and I would love to place Mason on one by himself while I get to play on the other but their always seems to be a line and I feel bad. It is ultimately for the kids and I know how much I love it and can only imagine the thrill it brings them. I guess we feel some what justified playing it with Mason on it in front of us even if he has no idea what he is doing.

St. Patricks Day Parade

We loaded the kids up and went downtown to the St. Patrick's Day Parade. No coloring the river green here like they do in Chicago, but it was an enjoyable parade. For a short time we thought it was a political parade. Almost every candidate was giving out stickers and kids love stickers. Especially Mason, he now likes to slap them on his back. I think it comes from the daycare center at the gym, they print the kids name off and place the sticker on their backs. As you can see he had a great time collecting the stickers and would give it immediately to either Rob or me to place on his coat. It was cute Mr. Hal Daub came over and shook Mason's hand. We also might end up in some sort of publication. A journalist walking by saw Mason's coat and asked us a few questions regarding Mason's attire. Stardom seems to run in the family these days. I should have taken a picture of Mason drooling over the drummers in the high school bands along with the drummers for the over the hill drill team. He was captivated. He was also captivated by the blue sucker he scored at the start of the parade. I think it took him 15 minutes to realize if he place this sucker in his bag he could collect more. I should have a taken video of him. Candy is being thrown right in front of him and he just stood their admiring it and watching all the other kids pick it up because he was satisfied holding his prized blue sucker. We did finally convince him to put the sucker in his bag and go for more, but he did impress us and pull the blue sucker back out of the bad when we were trucking back to the car and request to eat it. We were also impressed that he shook hands with clowns along with a cougar high school mascot. He is starting to come out of his shell a bit.

Magnet/Chalk Wall

I ventured out and painted a chalkboard wall for Mason and Ellery. I thought they would enjoy it and I was correct. I did get fancy and put magnetic paint under the chalk paint so they have a magnetic chalk board wall. It really keeps them entertained and Ellery loves marking on it. I do have to regulate her a bit more because she likes to try to eat the chalk. Mason likes to draw on it and he is the keeper of the eraser. I painted the wall in the hallway and I am pleased with the choice. I contemplated painting a chalk wall in Mason's room, but didn't like the idea of colored chalk and carpet. I like having them just off the kitchen in the hallway, it is a bit dusty but it cleans up nicely on the hard wood floors.

Felt Pencil Roll

I attempted to make Mason a felt pencil roll and didn't measure correctly. I should have made it when I could give it my full attention, but I was excited to see if I remembered how to sew. Needless to say it has a lot of endearments and he likes it so who cares if it isn't perfect. I did make a M out of buttons on the back side and should have put it on the end so when it is rolled up you can see it. The pattern was from Amanda Soule's The Creative Family. My friend Kim loves her and has made quite a few items from her book, and I can see why. I am beginning to like her as well.

Colors

This is an "I think my kids are above average" entry. Not to worry, I am sure they will do something that will burst my bubble or question what path in life they are choosing but for today I am a boasting mama. Ellery can climb up into the chair herself. I am impressed because Mason couldn't/wouldn't climb on anything at her age. Also, look at how Mr 2.5 years can color. It appears he attempts to stay within a certain area rather then scribble on the whole page.

Welcome Home Lucky #3

We took Mason and Ellery to the pet store and let Mason pick out a new fish. I feel for all the fish Mason picked up. He turned them up and over to peek at them and gave them the once over before deciding it wasn't worthy and then went to pick up another. He was allowed to carry the newest member of our family up one isle before he had to ride in the cart. We asked Mason what he wanted to name the new fish and he looked at us like we were stupid as he said "Lucky". Meet Lucky #3. They say 3rd time is a charm, so we will see if we can keep this beta alive for the average 3 year life span he deserves.

Dinos Vs Iron

I set up the ironing board and was gathering all my supplies to complete my task and when I came back I was met by these biting beasts. Mason was thrilled with the new area to play that was out of reach of his sister. She likes to knock them all down and for some reason Mason doesnt' like it. He likes to put them on his fingers like they are biting him. Sometimes they bite him so hard that he can't get them off his finger himself and he asks me for assistance. I asked him the other day if he wanted to turn his biting dinosaurs into kissing dinosaurs and they converted but only for a few minutes.

Ellery 1 Year Check up

We took Ellery in for her 1 year check up today. She is looking good and trending nicely on the growth charts. A nice steady curve, I was hoping for big jump up on the charts but can't be too disappointed because she is a happy healthy toddler.
Her Stats:
Height 29.5 inches (58%)
Weight 19lb8oz (21%)
Head Circumference 44cm (18%)
Who knows where this dainty gal pulled her genes from.
She is not walking but we catch her standing without holding onto anything. She loves pushing the walker toy and pushes it all over the house and up and down the driveway. She loves to feed herself and has to have her own spoon at meal times and will put the spoon into the food and attempt to put it up to her mouth. She loves to give hugs and kisses. Open mouth kisses are still in style along with blowing them. She will say bye bye, I did it, Mas for Mason, Dada, and Mama along with other words for dog, cat, milk that we can't translate yet. Mason was obsessed with balls when he was one and she doesn't show an obsession with any one toy. She loves to pick up a phone and pretend to talk on it, loves to color on paper or on the chalkboard, but will play with most anything that she finds. She will point to her nose when asked and then when you ask her where her ears are she still points to her nose. She lets you know what she wants when she wants and this is a concept Mason is having a hard time understanding. She doesn't sit back and let him run she show anymore. She is a great sleeper like Mason. She sleeps 12 hours a night and naps once a day for about an hour. I think she would nap in the morning if I'd let her, but then she doesn't want to go back down when Mason does so I make her stay up so I can get one break a day. I take her to the gym and put her in child care and that is her only socialization and she does great with it. They adore her and she really enjoys all the activity. She is getting much better with her male phobia. She doesn't cry right off the bat when they approach and sometimes doesn't cry at all when they hold her, but she still has those rare moments.

Neighborhood Art

For anyone coming up to visit us anytime soon you might get a special visual treats Use your own imagination, but we think we are starting to see a trend.
Aren't we lucky to have found such a cultural neighborhood?

Poor Lucky

I am sad to report our Lucky #2 is no longer with us. He was placed in a cup while his bowl was being cleaned out, not out of the ordinary for us to let him sit in the cup over night while the water temperature regulates itself. We thought we were being good to him by letting the water settle so he wouldn't get a brain freeze. Well did we think wrong this time. I walked into Mason's bathroom this morning to retrieve the fish to place him back into the tank. I was getting ready to call out for Mason to help me when I was stopped in my tracks by an unidentified black object in the sink. For a brief moment I thought "wholy comolies what has crawled out of our sink" and then I took the crime scene in. Our Clue analysis let us to believe it was D.C. the cat in the bathroom with her paw attempting to play with Lucky.

Internet STAR as well

I just love the emails I get from TruTV. Too bad we don't get any royalties for airings or postings! It makes my weekend even more special, even if it is short lived.
The Email......
"Guess who's on the truTV homepage this weekend? We update it again on Monday, but until then, your star continues to shine!"
http://www.trutv.com/

What I learned today......

What I learned today is that off brand washable markers aren't so washable. Mason was so excited to get new markers for Christmas and we have used them a few times and I noticed they were a bit harder to wash off his hands and table than his Crayola ones. Since they were harder to wash, we have limited their use. They offer a wider variety of colors than our Crayola pack a reason for the purchase along with being less expensive. Neither will be reasons for future purchases. Mason spotted them in the cabinet today and requested to draw on his easel. Ellery was just as excited, I hear laughing and look down and notice that they aren't coloring on the paper but each other. Can you guess who was coloring with brown and who had blue? Needless to say if I would have not been drawn in by the neon green and pink colors the pack had to offer I wouldn't have experienced scrubbing my daughters forehead and making her scream only to be successful enough to get the blue strip to look like a faint vein on her forehead. I thought I got Mason's scrubbed off ok, but Rob's power of observation proved me wrong. He was sitting by Mason at dinner time and asked why he had a bruise next to his eye. I then tell Rob that I have a sneaking suspicion that bruise is washable.

Container Gardening

I had a dream on starting a garden and then it left me. Here a few of the excuses on why the thought of gardening left me; I'd have to prepare a place in the yard, I have to worry about the dog getting into it along with the large family of bunnies that live in the yard with the dog, I do have two small children, and I don't have any gardening experience. I am now thinking I could handle a container garden on our deck. I am currently in the process of getting books from the library to embark on the endeavour. It appears Ellery is in favor of containers and has gained some experience and might be able to help me out.

Lost a bet

I don't like to bet unless I am almost certain that I will win. I made a bet with Rob that my dad wouldn't come up to visit since we had snow in the forecast. Well, I was wrong and lost the bet. Papaw was up and at them at 5am on Friday so he could beat the storm and partake in the birthday festives. Mason was thrilled and excited to have both his Papaw and Grandma Ellen visiting at the same time. Papaw is an early riser like Mason and they were able to get some quality time in. Grandma Ellen was very nice to us and put Mason to bed for us while Rob and I went out on a date and ran errands another night. I am getting spoiled by living closer to the grandparents and can't thank them enough for all the love and support!